This T32 application seeks to equip pediatric rheumatology fellows with the investigative skills necessary to succeed in meaningful scientific careers in academic pediatric rheumatology. The program is based in a large Division of Pediatric Rheumatology (PR) with several center grants (P30, P01) and NIH-funded investigators. The Pediatric Rheumatology Division, including its related clinic, is part of Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center (CCHMC) and The Children's Hospital Research Foundation (TCHRF), as well as part of the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine (UCCOM) with its clinical and biomedical science departments. The Pediatric Rheumatology divisional research program draws strength from uniquely integrated teams of clinical, translational and basic researchers involved in active ongoing collaborations with members of Divisions of Immunobiology, Human Genetics, Hematology/Oncology, Bone Marrow Transplantation, Nephrology, Pharmacology, Radiology, Psychology and Bioinformatics. The primary faculty advisors were selected from 15 specialties divisions based on the ongoing collaboration with Rheumatology faculty, high research productivity and strong record of training of young scientists. Although the main emphasis will be placed on MD and MD/PhD trainees in the PR Fellowship Program, PhD candidates with strong interest in translational research in pediatric rheumatologic diseases will be sought as well. The majority of trainees will focus their research and training activities in one of the two special emphasis areas of strength, unique to the CCHMC research center and the Division of Rheumatology: (1) application of bioinformatics and omics technologies including genomics, epigenetics, proteomics, and metabolomics to advance translational research related to pediatric rheumatology, and (2) clinical epidemiology, development of clinical outcome assessment tool and clinical trial design. The program is well supported by core facilities as well as by academic courses, including a mandatory course in medical ethics. Other available courses include computational system biology, immunobiology, molecular genetics, and epidemiology and biostatistics. The interdepartmental Immunobiology Graduate Program (MS and PhD) that is centered at CCHMC complements existing programs in Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and Education in the UCCOM. It is believed that this Training Program for Pediatric Rheumatic Disease Research provides unique resources and will continue to enlarge the pool of individuals with a career interest in biomedical science as it relates to pediatric rheumatology, a pool that is far too small to meet the requirements of the next decades as molecular medicine is increasingly applied in the clinic.